Evaluating a Job Offer

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Evaluating a Job OfferDifferences to Expect

• Presenters
• John Hillmann
• Jeff Mowris

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Agenda

• Introductions
• Evaluating Job Offers
• Transitioning from School into a Professional
  Environment
• Questions

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Before you Interview

• Determine your needs/wants
• Salary/benefits
• Location
• Type of work (manufacturing, RD, etc)
• Industry (automotive, food, pharmaceutical, etc)
• Size of company
• Dont waste time interviewing with companies that
  will not fit your needs
• Similar to choosing a college

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During the Interview

• Ask general questions
• Company philosophy
• Type of work (engineering, supervision)
• Typical career path
• Dont waste time asking about specifics
• Wait until after an offer for details
• Decide if you actually want to work for the
  company before an offer is extended

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Once an Offer is Extended

• Dont be afraid to ask any question
• If a company is interested in hiring you, they
  should be happy to answer any question
• Direct questions to correct person
• HR Director
• Recruiter
• Hiring manager

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Items to Consider When Looking at Job Offers

• Scope of the job, nature of work
• How the job meets your goals
• Organization and personnel
• Opportunities for professional growth
• Values and philosophies of management
• Geographic conditions (relocation/travel)
• Salary and potential for increased salary
• Benefits

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Understanding the Position

• Does it match my career goals?
• Does it seem to offer the challenge Im seeking?
• Will it use my existing skills and education?
• Do I understand the job responsibilities clearly?
  What is the scope of my responsibility?
• Are the work hours acceptable? Is overtime
  required? If so, how often? What happens if Im
  inflexible?

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Organization and Personnel

• Will I fit into the corporate environment?
• What is the companys future? Is it
  restructuring? Downsizing? Expanding?
• Do I understand the chain of command clearly?
• Do I know my managers style and work
  expectations?
• What does the rest of my department team look
  like? Do I feel that I will fit in?

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Opportunities for Personal Growth

• Can I become a member of the team quickly and
  succeed immediately?
• What are my promotional opportunities in this
  position?
• Do I think that I can advance in this company? Is
  it a leader in its field or industry?
• What does the company do to help me maintain and
  improve my professional status and knowledge?

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Values and Philosophies of Management

• How prominent is the companys commitment to its
  values and code of professional conduct?
• How does the company contribute to the community?
• Is the organization known for promoting from
  within?
• How committed is the company to workforce
  diversity?

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Geographic Conditions

• Do I know enough about the community I could be
  living in?
• What will my commute be? Do I need a car? Is
  alternate transportation available?
• Is there a large difference in the cost of
  living? If so, is there compensation or salary
  adjustment?
• Must I travel? If so, how much? How far?
• Must I relocate in the future? If so, what are
  the other possible locations?

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Salary and Potential for Increased Salary

• What will I be paid in this position? Is there a
  fixed salary or salary range for this position?
• How often will my pay be reviewed?
• How does individual development and performance
  influence my salary growth?
• Is superior performance rewarded? How?
• Is there a variable pay program? What is the
  variable pay expectation for this job?

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Benefits

• What is the benefits package?
• When is coverage effective?
• How much does the company pay, How much will I be
  responsible for paying?
• How much time off will I have (vacation,
  holidays, sick time)?
• What types of retirement programs does the
  company offer?
• How does the organization support employee
  wellness?

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Getting an Offer

• An official offer needs to include
• position title
• starting salary
• start date
• Avoid accepting an on-the-spot offer
• do some homework and evaluate the total
  compensation before accepting
• a lower salary may be equal if the value of the
  benefits package is more
• Know the decision deadline
• ask for an extension if necessary

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Job Offer Contingencies

• Offers often have contingencies attached
• pass a physical examination
• document your citizenship or immigration status
• obtain security clearance
• undergo a thorough background investigation,
  including credit history, police records and
  travel history
• verify your academic credentials
• Non-Compete Agreements
• to prevent former employees from working for
  competitors for a specified period of time

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Total Compensation

• Benefit portion typically ranges from 25-35 of
  base salary
• Be aware of details of the benefit program and
  calculate the full value of salary and
  benefits--Total Compensation
• Do your research on salary and benefits
• have a bottom-line compensation figure, the
  minimum youre willing to accept
• calculate what you need to live on, adjust for
  cost-of-living index for the city/area

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Benefits Packages

• Time away from work
• vacation
• holidays
• sick days/personal days
• Work arrangements
• flex time
• telecommuting
• overtime, comp time, travel premiums
• Relocation expenses

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Benefits Packages-Insurance

• Medical
• Dental
• Optical/Eyecare
• Life Insurance
• Accidental Death
• Disability
• Business Travel

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Benefits Packages-Retirement, Stock Plans

• 401k Plans
• check on company matches on your contribution
• check the time it takes to vest in the company
  matching amount
• Pension Plans
• many companies are cutting back on these
• Profit Sharing
• typically at discretion of executive management
• excellent benefit when company is profitable
• Stock Options/ESOPs (Employee Stock Ownership
  Plans)
• buy stock at a discount from market value

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Benefits Packages-Additional Perks

• Tuition reimbursement
• Professional/Advanced training
• Expense reimbursement
• Dependent care
• Flexible Spending Accounts(pre-tax)
• Employee Assistance Programs

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Benefits Packages-Additional Perks

• Health Clubs
• Transportation Programs
• parking/commuting reimbursement
• Professional membership dues
• Special company discounts
• Unpaid leave time
• Termination agreement (severance pay)

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Rating Your Job Offers

• Rate the jobs on the same criteria
• determine the criteria most important to you
• base criteria on your priorities
• Create and use a Decision Matrix
• use a system that works for you
• try to be as objective as possible

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Decision MatrixExample 1
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Decision Matrix Example 2
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After the Decision

• Communicate your acceptance
• verbal acceptance is ok
• follow with written acceptance or return
  employment agreement to company
• Respond to all job offers
• not necessary to say what company you accepted
  with
• communicate your appreciation
• keep contact information

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Evaluating Internship Offers

• Dont need as much detail as full-time
• Important things to consider
• Site visit possible?
• Level of responsibility/Type of work
• Hourly vs. Salary
• Start/end dates
• Relocation expenses
• Housing provided?
• Other interns?
• Vacation possible?
• Dont be afraid to try something new

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Questions on Job Offers?
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Success vs. Failure

• Success can be measured in different ways
• For every 1 way to succeed, there are at least 99
  ways to fail
• If you dont know the criteria for success,
  youre almost guaranteed to fail
• Giving a C effort or result is unacceptable
• Giving an A effort is usually unnecessary

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Problem Solving

• School
• A 4x3-13 centrifugal pump is supposed to deliver
  90gpm of 100F water to a tank 35 ft above the
  centerline. Figure 14.2 shows the layout of the
  2 discharge pipe, and Figure 14.3 shows the
  associated pump curve. The current power input
  is a 1750 rpm, 3 phase, 460V, 18FLA, 30Hp motor.
  Determine the pressure the pump must supply and
  whether the motor is sufficient.

• Work
• That pump isnt working right. Go fix it.

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Problem definition

• Problems are not always clearly defined
• Often need to choose how accurate to be (i.e. how
  much safety factor)
• You will need to make assumptions, but
  assumptions are based on experience
• Never work on the solution before you know the
  question
• Determine scope for an acceptable solution
• Design? Budget? Implementation?

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Problem solving process

• Vendors can often do some things for you, so
  dont waste your time trying to do everything
• Equations and calculations are great, but try
  using them as your last option
• Sometimes half the problem is determining the
  values of your variables
• Always list your assumptions

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Problem Solutions

• The solution to a problem is very rarely a number
  that you put a box around
• Once you have a solution, you generally still
  need to sell it to everyone
• How you present a solution is just as important
  as the solution itself
• If you involve multiple people in the process,
  they are more likely to accept your solution

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The Almighty

• Every business is out to make money
• The best solution and the right solution are
  often two very different things
• Just because you develop a solution does not mean
  that it will be used
• Almost every calculation ends with an economic
  analysis

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Time Management

• You are ultimately responsible for managing your
  time effectively
• Set a schedule and track your progress
• Dont volunteer for everything possible
• Imagine being handed the text book, the syllabus
  and the date/time for your final could you pass
  the class?

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Company Culture

• Pay attention to unwritten policies
• Lunch breaks/personal time
• E-mail
• Internet usage
• Follow corporate guidelines on
• IP security
• Cleanliness/organization
• Safety

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Office politics

• In school, you just do your work and receive a
  grade for it
• At work, personal advancement is not always
  measured on merit alone
• You dont need to impress everyone, just the
  right people
• You never know who will be your next boss
• You cant burn too many bridges

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A diploma is just a piece of paper

• Graduating with a degree in engineering means
  youre done learning the first 20
• School taught you problem solving skills, you
  need to learn how to use them in the workplace
• Dont expect to work just as one type of engineer
  (ME or ChE, etc.)
• Experience and accomplishment is what really
  matters
• High School senior versus College freshman
• You can learn something from everybody

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Communication

• It doesnt matter how good your idea is if nobody
  else can understand it
• There is no excuse for poor grammar or spelling,
  especially for external communication
• Always send professional e-mails
• You never know who they will be forwarded to
• Never write a paragraph when a sentence will
  suffice
• Provide answers, but be ready to supply method if
  asked

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Priorities

• Discuss priorities with your boss
• If everything is a priority, you have problems
• In school, everything is important and must be
  completed in one semester

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Other Differences

• If youre not a morning person, set 2 alarms
• Oversleeping is inexcusable, and napping is even
  worse
• You can afford better beer but have less free
  time to drink it
• You will not have every computer program on earth
  available to you, so dont be surprised if you
  dont have Maple to do all your math
• Never complain to the parent of a newborn that
  you got only 6 hours of sleep last night
• Do or do not, there is no try

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Questions?

• John Hillmann
• Jeff Mowris